DOVER — The Strafford County Attorney's office on Thursday called to the stand the current adoptive mother of a boy said to have been beaten and starved in a New Durham residence, who described the child's current disposition as happy and outgoing.

“He's got a really warm, affectionate, outgoing personality,” she said. “…He's always had that. That's just the core of who he is as a person.”

The woman, who is not being identified to protect the identity of the 9-year-old, said when her family fostered the young victim in the spring of 2010 he was obsessed with food and constantly asked about it. She said she never observed any of the behavioral issues or special dietary restrictions allegedly stated by the defendant in this case, 34-year-old Christina Thomas.

In a Strafford County Superior Court room, Deputy County Attorney Alysia Cassotis projected some images onto a screen, showing the growth of the victim found to weigh only 23 pounds when he was removed from Thomas' Birch Hill residence at the age of 7.

“He's kind of grown into his body,” the boy's adoptive mother continued. “…The fluidity of how he moves and what he can do is just dramatically different. He's just much calmer. Just across the board, there's not one year I haven't seen him really grow and change.”

The boy's pediatrician, a Portsmouth family doctor who has practiced medicine for more than 20 years, testified he has “never” seen such a severe case. The doctor said he has known Thomas for more than 10 years, and understood she was the young patient's guardian.

According to previous stated facts, Thomas took the boy's biological mother into her home around 2003 when she was pregnant. When the victim was born, Thomas offered to help her old childhood friend by sharing in the responsibilities of raising her child. Thomas is now charged with a Class A felony of first-degree assault — which carries a 7½- to 15-year prison sentence — for allegedly starving the boy between 2006 and 2010.

Flipping through his records, the doctor said when the boy was 4½ years old, he weighed 23 pounds and 2 ounces. He was 29 inches tall then. On average, the doctor said a boy of similar age is about 42 inches tall, and weighs between 40 and 45 pounds.

Cassotis took notes on large white paper before 15 jurors, laying out a timeline showing when Thomas had missed appointments for the boy with specific weights during the times when she returned to the doctor's office. The Portsmouth doctor stated in June 2006, when he requested Thomas bring the boy back in two weeks for an urgent follow-up visit, she did not return until March 2008. Between the winter of 2003 to the winter of 2009, the boy had only put on a little more than 15 pounds, according to his office's records.

The doctor added he was gravely concerned for the boy's health, frustrated by test results and missed appointments and feared the child might die. He said he urged Thomas to seek referrals and bring the boy to other hospitals for care.

In cross examination with Thomas' defense attorney Steven Keable, the doctor added Thomas was “enthusiastic” about taking those referral appointments on, at New Hampshire and Massachusetts hospitals.

Through various testimonies, it has been revealed Thomas had difficulty making appointments for the boy when her household, with an average of 10 to 20 people living there at one time, struggled with car repairs and money. The doctor said he also understood at one point Thomas was grappling with her own “high-risk pregnancy.”

The doctor also said in cross examination the boy did test positive for lactose intolerance and he did not believe the boy was severely malnourished when he would come in for visits with Thomas. The doctor stressed in his belief, however, the only thing that changed for the child between 2010 and today was his environment, and that is the sole reason behind his dramatic improvement.

“His progression has been remarkable,” the doctor said, referring to the boy's current adoptive family environment.

While allegations of harsh mistreatment have come forward in this case, alleging Thomas tied the boy to his bed with a chain, locked him in a dog kennel in the basement for hours, forced him to gorge on food until he was sick and punished him by taking food away, the prosecution has to prove not only that Thomas withheld food from him but that she was his primary caretaker.

Keable has brought forward in his limited time to present facts while the prosecution runs through its extensive list of witnesses that Thomas left special pediatric formula in the freezer for her family to feed the boy when he needed it and did her best to care for him by working with New Durham School teachers and staff.

Some school staff testified they were told to punish the boy by taking his lunch food away, but former School Principal Barbara Reed testified she felt Thomas was concerned and trying to help the boy.

Keable noted in his opening statements Thomas is a kind woman who took many people into her home who were struggling but now, the former housemates have “an ax to grind.”

The prosecution on the other hand, has painted a different picture, alleging the blond haired woman seated at the defense table, chewing gum and laughing with family and friends during breaks, is a controlling and threatening woman. Many witnesses on the stand, including family relatives, have said they are afraid of Thomas and the potential for retaliation.

The trial began at 1 p.m. Thursday due to conflicting schedules and Judge John M. Lewis also took an extended recess to meet with attorneys in a separate case. He said while the trial will not continue Friday or Monday, due to the Presidents Day holiday, next Tuesday should mark the last day of state witnesses, with the trial potentially concluding by next Thursday or Friday.

At the start of the court appearance, Keable also filed two motions — one to bring on an additional witness in the case and another to present surveillance footage from the lobby of the Dover superior court. The motions were accepted by state counsel.

Cassotis said she could not elaborate on what surveillance footage the defense is looking to bring forward and paperwork for the motion was unavailable Thursday afternoon for public review.